Apparatus for treating shoes.



T. F. WHELANL APPARATUS FOR TREATING SHOES.

APPLICATION FILED NOV-29,1911.

Patented 00t19, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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- VWTNESSES COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH Cfl-.WASHINOTON. n. C.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Oct. 19, 191.

FIG. 6

T. F. WHELAN.

APPARATUS FOR TREATING SHOES.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 29. 19!].

M'mssse THoMAs F. wrinLAN, OFNEWABK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR To sAvopAY RACK COMPANY, OF sT. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A conPoRATIoN or MISSOURI.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 19, 1915.

Original application filed May 11, 1911, Serial No. 28,536. Divided and this application fiierl November 29,

To all whom itmag concern; a I

Be it known that I, THOMAS F. WHELAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Vewark, New Jersey, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Apparatus for Treating Shoes,'of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable othexi skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theyaccompanying drawings, forming part of this specification. a

This invention relates to apparatu for use in heating and drying shoesduring their manufacture, and more particularly to an apparatus for dryingthe-toe portions ofshoes a a I The presentinvention covers certain improvements in the forms of apparatus. disclosed in my copending applications Ser. No. 826,396, renewed .March 21, l 9l t and Ser. No. 578,930, filed August 25, 1910, and this application is a division of my application Serial No. 626,536, filed May 11,1911. In each of said former applications the apparatus embodies a heating compartment having a front wall provided with openings to receive the tips of shoes which are insertedin the compartment, a heating medium within said compartmentforjsupplying the necessary heat towithdraw all of the moisture from the materials of box toes, or to dry the channel or lacquer used repairing the patent leather tips of shoes, before the lasts are withdrawn from the shoes. Under the present invention a heating compartment of increasedcapacity is provided in that it embraces,practically two compartments in one lreated from a common source. In other words, the heating compartment is so formed that the tips of shoes may be inserted therein on bothisides of the heating means so as to double the capacity of the compartment over that shown in my said prior applications. This construction produces, in effect, pai s'ofelongated oppositely arranged compartments having openings in their side for receiving the toes only of the shoes, and by its use a great economy in space is accomplished over the constructions disclosed in saidprior applications.

Some of the objects of the present invention are to efiect such economy'of'spac'e, to

Serial No. 663,048.

increase the capacity and efficiency of ap paratus of this character, and to simplify the1r construction, and dec ease their cost of manufacture.

The invention will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a view in perspective of a shoe drying rack embodying the invention; Fig. 2 is an end elevation thereof; Fig. 3 is a view in cross-section through one of the heating compartments; Fig. 1 is a view in longitudinal section, partly broken away, through one of the heating compartments, and higs. 5, 6, 7 and 8 are cross-sectional views of the heating compartments of modified constructions. I

Referring to Fig. 1, the shoe rack 1 com prises a series of posts 2, to which are connected shelves or shoe supports 8. A heating compartment 4: of suitable material, such as sheet iron lined with asbestos or other heat insulating material, is arranged between each pair of inwardly extending shelves. The shape of the compartment as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 is that of a substantially rectangular box or housing having inwardly curved top and an outwardly curved bottom, the latter forming a pocket or recess 5 within which is located a heating coil 6. The flatloottom of the compartment 7 on each side of the recess 5 is suitably supported upon oppositely extending shelves 3 which are rigidly connected with the posts 2. As shown in Fig. 1, ears or lugs 9 may extend downwardly from the compartments.

41 at each end, and set screws 10 are in threaded engagement with openings through the lugs and bear against the ends of the shelves 3 to connect the compartments to the shelves. The walls 11 at each side of the compartments are provided with openings 12 of suitable shape to accommodate the tip of shoes. The side walls 11 may, ifdesired, be made of asbestos cloth slitted at suitable intervals to form the openings for shoes. The end walls 13 of the compartment 4: are provided with suitable air inlet openings 14 which are preferably controlled by rotary damper valves 15having openings corresponding in size with the openings 14 and which are pivotally supported centrally of the openings'ld. The heating coil 6 is positioned between opposite dampers 15, and may be connected with any suitable source of electrical energy, by the terminal wires illustrated in Fig. 2, for example. If desired, the compartment et may be divided by 'a partition 16 into smaller compartments,

as shown in Fig. at, for the reception of one or more pairs of oppositely located shoes. l/Vhen the heating coil is energized the air within the compartment 4. is heated and rises and, by the curved upper walls of the compartment, is deflected directly against the tips of the shoes which are within the compartment, thereby drying thoroughly the materials of the box toes which contain moisture. The air in the compartment is caused to circulate by opening the dampers, and this air passes directly over the heater and against the toe portions of the shoes and removes all moisture from the boxes, thereby allowing the boxes to become permanently set and hard.

In Figs. 5, 6, 7 and 8, the formation of the heating compartment is modified. In Fig. 5 the upper walls 18 of the compartment have considerable inward curvature as compared with Fig. 3, so as to direct the heat from the heating coil not only upon the tips of shoes, but also on the soles of the shoes in the compartment, which is especially desirable in McKay shoes in which the sole is permanently connected with the upper. In Fig. 6, the curvature in the upper walls 13 of the shoe-tip-receiving compartments is not so pronounced as in Fig. 5, and the recess 5 for the heating coil 6 is made much deeper with the sides 17 projecting upward in close proximity to the upper wall 13 thereby forming in effect a heating chamber, the walls of which protect the soles of the shoe tips inserted within the compartments and force the heat up into engagement with the tops of the uppers. This construction is especially useful when welt shoes are to be dried, as the uppers in this type of shoe are held in lasted position temporarily by means of a wire around the toe, and the absence of tacks wouldcause the heat, if directly applied, to shrink the sole away from the upper. Figs. 7 and 8 show a construction of the compartmentwhereby the upper wall 13 is curved upwardly where it is connected to the side walls 11, and then bent downwardly or inwardly to a decided extent at 18, By this arrangement a considerable space is left above the shoe tip, within which space the heated air will be re tained in larger quantities than in the forms formerly described, and in this manner there is less'liability of the heated air becoming exhausted through leakage around the shoes in the openings 12. In Fig. 8

there is shown in addition a gate or door 19 which is arranged opposite each opening 12 to close the opening when a shoe is not inserted therein. This gate is formed by a member 20 pivoted at 21 within the housing, and having a weighted arm 22- attached to normally hold the door or gate 20 in closed position.

It may be desirable to finish the edges of the apertures 12 with some protecting means suitable for protecting the shoes resting with their toes in the apertures from abrasion by the edges of the apertures, or from injury due to the heat of the compartment wall. To this end, as shown in Figs. 5, 6, 7 and S, 1 line the edges of the apertures with a felt binding which protects the shoe, and which also operates to prevent the egress of the heated air in larger quantities than desirable.

I am aware that changes may be made in the arrangement, details of construction, or

combinations of the various elements of the illustrated forms of the invention, without departing from the spirit thereof, the scope of which is set forth in the following claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A rack for drying shoe tips by artificial heat comprising superimposed compartments arranged in pairs and formed by deflecting the top wall of each compartment, the bottom wall of each compartment being deflected downwardly to receive the heating medium.

2. A. shoe drying apparatus for drying the tips only of shoes, the same comprising a pair of oppositely arranged elongated compartments having openings through their opposite walls, means for supporting the shoes outside of said openings, and a heating medium intermediate the pair of compartments.

3. A rack for drying shoe tips by artificial heat, comprising a series of pairs of oppositely arranged compartments for receiving parts of shoes, a support for the shoes adjacent and outside each compartment, a single heating device in communi-- cation with each pair of said compartments, said compartments having openings communicating with the atmosphere.

4. In a device of the character described, a rack for drying shoes comprising pairs of oppositely arranged heating compartments, said compartments having openings in their outer side walls to receive the tips of shoes, means adjacent said openings to support th shoes and a heating medium arranged in communication with each pair of said compartments.

5. In a device of the character described, a rack for drying shoes comprising pairs of oppositely arranged heating compartments having openings in their outer walls for the reception of tips of shoes, a heater intermediate of said openings and means for supporting the shoes adjacent and outside the said openings.

6. In an apparatus of the character described, a housing forming elongated com- 3 said 0 enin s and outside the housin 7. A rack for drying shoe tips by artificial heat, comprising a pair of oppositely arranged compartments, a support for shoes adjacent and outside each compartment, a single heating chamber in communication with each compartment of the pair, and a source of heat supply to said heating chamber, said compartments being partially open M to the atmosphere.

8. A device for treating shoes comprising a compartment having a Wall thereof provided withapertures for receiving portions of shoes, means communicating with said compartment and adapted to generate a heated medium for application to the shoes, and means for closing said apertures when they are not occupied by shoes.

9. A device for treating shoes comprising a casing including a wall, said wall being provided with an aperture adapted to receive a portion of a shoe, the edges of the wall about the aperture being finished with yieldable material, and av heating device positioned in the casing.

10. A device for treating shoes comprising a casing provided with an aperture for the reception of a portion of a shoe, heating means within said casing, and means for closing said aperture when not occupied by a shoe.

In testimony whereof I hereunto afliX my signature in the presence of two witnesses, this 16th day of November, 1911.

THOMAS F. VVHELAN.

Witnesses:

WM. HASELMAYER, Ron'r J PERCY.

(Iopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D; G. 

